Similarities between Paganism and Christianity

There are so many similarities between paganism and Christianity that to go througheach would take pages and pages. So instead of going through all i know of I have cited those that I think are important and accompanied them with the sites in which they are found. I will update my list and info as I continue to blog. It is also important to note that even within the examples there are further examples that I have decided not to go into at this time.

I think its important for me to state before hand that although I do have a bit of a Pagan belief that I also hold some Christian beliefs well so the following is not weitten with the intent to disprove one religion from the other. Only to illustrate that yes, there are similarities in Holidays, celebrations and beliefs. So it is possible to intertwine the two beliefs in many ways. I am not interested in deciding in this post which came first, which is right, if the Christian Church ‘borrowed’ pagan celebrations and beliefs, If Christianity was only a way to gain control of the masses and put fear in them so that chaos and ‘crime’ would decrease, etc, etc. I have respect for bothChristianity and paganism. The similarities make one think that perhaps if some Christian practices were ‘borrowed’ from ancient Paganism, perhaps Pagans aren’t so evil and bad. Food for thought.

This may be all over the place because I will mostly be just stating similarities unless I feel that a personal explanation would be beneficial.

Easter: was named after the Norse Goddess Ostara. The food she ate to stay immortal was egg and the animal she was associatedwith was a rabbit. Easter egg hunts that are held by many Christian families and even churches on Easter is an old pagan tradition.

Christmas: Alot of Christmas decorations put up in homes and Christmas trees were a pagan tradition. Candy canes and holly were used to decorate Pagan temples back in the times of ancient Greece. Giving gifts, the yule log…all pagan.

Samson(a herculine figure who is granted tremendousstrength through the Lordto combat his enemies) and Hercules

The snake in the Garden of Edan and The Dragon that guarded the golden apples in the garden of the Gods

Pandora’s Box and the temptation of Eve.

The Bible tells of a flood and Greek mythology tells of a flood also.

God said, let us make man in our image. Zeus said ” “let us make man in the image of the gods”.

The Greek God Bacchus’ birth was on December 25th just as Jesus. They were both crucified for the benefit of mankind. They both rose again on the third day.

Another Pagan God in Turkish mythology called Attis was crucified, buried and rose again on the third day. The myth predating Christianity.

Early Christians were naked while being immersed for baptism. Afterward they were put in white dress and given a candle and walked in procession to a basilica. Followers of Mithra were also baptized in the same manner though given torches to carry to the temple.

The Bible records that Jesus was crucified between two thieves. One went to heaven and the other to hell. In the Mithra’s mysteries, a common image showed Mithra’s flanked by two torchbearers, one on either side. One held a torch pointed upwards, the other downwards. This symbolized ascent to heaven or descent to hell.

Early Christians initiated converts in March and April by baptism. Mithraism initiated their new members at this time as well.